We're famous!!

Today was quite an adventure!

We started off with taking baths which really wasn't too bad. We managed to have hot water this morning, so that was nice. The only difficult part was attempting to stand directly over the drain so that the water didn't go all over the bathroom floor. But it of course went all over the bathroom floor. And also washing your hair upside down while trying to avoid water running into your mouth or eyes is quite a task in itself.

We had breakfast afterward which consisted of omelets so all I had was bread. Then wandered out into the town. It was rainy and cold this morning and everyone had different ideas of where they wanted to go so we split into small groups. I went with Noah and my roommate Abby. After a while we came back to the hotel and played cards.

Lunch was AWESOME! So delicious. Curried potatoes, dal, red beans, rice, and paranthas. Then we got ready to go out and pick out fabric for handmade salwars. Except, as usual, I cut myself and had to run up to the room to get a bandaid. When I came back out the entire group had left..

So I probably shouldn't admit it in this blog, but I broke the rules and wandered off by myself. After walking for a few minutes I met a little boy who was on his break from school. He knew perfect english and was so cute and so intrigued by the way I looked. We talked for a while and I told him I would bring him an American dollar tomorrow haha
After that I continued on only to be stopped by a mother who asked if I would shake her daughters hand. So... I did. And then she also wanted to shake my hand. I wandered on and called people in the group, no one answered. After walking for almost half an hour I found a few people from the group. By this point everyone had already purchased their fabric so I had nothing to wear to the hospital tomorrow.

Once everyone was reunited we walked all the way to "old Manali" where things got very strange. So many cows! So many cars, and sooo very much gawking. We bought some handmade scarves and pants and whatnot. No lights in the shops so you couldn't even see what you were buying. While walking we were stopped almost every 5 minutes by Indians to ask if they could have their picture with us. SO FUNNY! They were so excited, wrapping their arms around us and smiling, so many cameras! Little girls kept asking for their picture with me and one asked if we were Bollyworld stars haha although obviously not because we are not Indian. Or maybe that doesn't matter..

After a while we took an auto rickshaw back into town where I saw my little friend again and we talked for a bit. He was confused as to why my shoes didn't have shoelaces and asked if I wanted to know where to buy some.

We had dinner at the hotel and then Milli took Abby and I out so that I could pick out some fabric. I have such picky taste when it comes to Indian clothes apparently. I just know what I like! The women here are dressed so beautifully in bright colors and lots of gold jewelry. 800 rubies (about $17) for 2 full outfits hand tailored for me. We had to buy the fabric and walk it about 10 minutes down the road to a tiny little room the size of a closet to get measured. The streets are all lit up now and everyone is dressed very fancy and eating ice cream cones. Guess friday nights mean party time no matter what country you're in.

It's only 9:06 but we are beat. I'll probably go to bed once I finish writing emails.

Goodnight!